Our Team

Alon Shepon – M.Sc, is an environmental scientist studying food systems, ecology and sustainability. His current research aims to understand the environmental implications of production and consumption of animal-based products within the US food system. Alon has NGO management experience of working with indigenous communities, which includes strategic planning, staff supervision, innovative project coordination, fund-raising and evaluation skills. Together with his interest in environmental sciences and in permaculture design, his engagement with the Israeli Forum for Sustainable Nutrition is focused on implementing sustainable food systems and diets.

Dorit Adler, B.Sc, MPH, is a Clinical Dietitian deeply involved in nutrition, public health, nutrition security and its relation to social issues. Dorit is the past Director of the Nutrition and Dietetic Department at the Hadassah Medical Center, Jerusalem. Currently she is the Head Dietitian of the Israeli Council for Nutrition Security, a member of the Heshel Center for Sustainability Leadership, as well as a member of the national advisories committees for women’s health and health promotion in the Ministry of Health. She served as the head of the food committee of the Israeli Diabetes Association. Dorit co-founded the Israeli Dietetic Association, and is one of the leaders in the field of diabetes education in Israel. Dorit heads the steering committee of the Israeli Forum for Sustainable Nutrition, and she sees her activity in the Forum as a key platform for bringing a comprehensive change in sustainable nutrition in Israel, both for individuals and the society as a whole.

Hagar Miller-Almog, B.Sc, RD, is a Clinical Dietitian and nutritionist, and is the founder and leading member of the professional forum for vegetarian and vegan nutrition in the Israeli Dietetic Association. She is co-founder and active member in a vivacious local community garden and applies in heart and soul a healthy and environmentally-friendly way of life. Hagar co-founded the Israeli Forum for Sustainable Nutrition, because of her belief that human health and the health of the environment are one and the same – and in order to encourage the creation of healthy communities, resilient to environmental challenges, and in which nutritional security is a fundamental right, essential for well-being.

Dr. Hagit Ulanovsky, Ph.D in environmental biology, is an environmental health consultant, specializing in risk management, and in science-to-policy issues. She is a graduate of the prestigious ‘Mimshak’ (Interface) program, where she served as a science-to-policy adviser to the Chief Scientist of Israel’s Ministry of Environmental Protection. Currently Hagit is a freelance consultant for the Israeli Government, NGO’s, and local municipalities. She co-founded and serves as Chairwoman of the Israeli Forum for Sustainable Nutrition, where she promotes her belief that every child in Israel should eat affordable, healthy and truly environmental-friendly food, now and in the future.

Dr. Haim Haviv, Ph.D in Biochemistry, and a professional pharmacist, is the Outreach Program Manager of the Davidson Institute of Science Education, the science education branch of the Weizmann Institute of Science in Rehovot, Israel. Haim was one of the founding members if the Israeli Forum for Sustainable Nutrition, where he is active in shaping a better future for generations to come, and is using his scientific skills as well as science-outreach expertise, in order to improve sustainability and nutritional safety.

Dr. Giora Alexandron, Ph.D in Computer Science Education is a Computer and Learning Scientist, currently a research fellow at MIT, where he studies the behavior of students taking Massive Open Online Courses. He was an environmental activist in Israel for many years. Giora co-founded the Israeli Forum for Sustainable Nutrition as he believes that the urgent need of furthering a healthier, more sustainable nutrition requires a multidisciplinary effort of researchers and practitioners who are committed to the public interest and to research-based decision making.

Dr. Noam Chehanovsky, Ph.D in plant sciences, is a plant geneticist and breeder. Among his activities, Noam has founded the “Zir’ey Kedem” (Ancient Seeds) Initiative, which focuses on the preservation of local heirloom seeds, and provides access to the seeds and knowledge for the benefit of local communities and private growers. Noam cofounded the Israeli Forum for Sustainable Nutrition because of his understanding of the importance of local vegetable growth, both in communities and privately, as a part of the sustainable nutrition revolution.

Sharon Manor , B.Sc in Advertising from NYIT, NYC, a former advertising account executive and high-tech operations manager, graduated the Heschel Center affiliate program of environmental and social leadership in Tel Aviv. Sharon co-founded the Israeli Forum for Sustainable Nutrition due to her realization that sustainable nutrition is a worldwide issue which needs to be strongly promoted in Israel, in order to provide safe, healthy and sustainable food for all.

Our Steering Committee

Elliot Berry is a professor in the Hebrew University in Jerusalem. His principal interests are the bio-psycho-social problems of weight regulation from obesity to anorexia nervosa, and the benefits of the Mediterranean diet; his laboratory research investigates the effects of nutrition on cognitive function. From a synthesis of this work he evolved the concept of the to understand how people cope with life stress and chronic diseases. Berry has chaired national committees for food supplementation and obesity and is an advisor to the Ministry of Health on nutrition. Prof Berry is a consultant for the WHO, World Bank and the Serbian Government in Public Health. He was the Director of the Braun School of Public Health & Community Medicine (2003-6) and Head of the WHO Collaborating Center in Capacity Building in Public Health (2007-2013). Berry was Director of the Dept of Human Nutrition & Metabolism at the Hebrew University-Hadassah Medical School and was a consultant at FAO, Rome (2013-4) where, following his development and publication of a Global Nutrition Index, he worked on indicators for food security and sustainability.

Prof. Lisa Sasson is a registered dietitian and a clinical associate professor at New York University’s Department of Nutrition, Food Studies, and Public Health. In this role, she teaches a variety of undergraduate and graduate courses and directs the graduate clinical master’s program, dietetic internship and NYU’s study abroad in Tuscany, Italy: Its Cuisine and the Mediterranean Diet. She also works with the NYU dental faculty to advance nutrition and oral health in the dental curriculum. In addition to her work at NYU, Lisa counsels private clients in healthy eating and weight management. She is a consultant to public affairs at Nickelodeon, a division of Viacom Media, on health and wellness. Lisa was a member of the food processing working group for Global Reporting Initiative, a nonprofit organization that developed the world’s most widely used sustainability reporting guidelines.

Dr. Meidad Kissinger professional interests and academic background are interdisciplinary. He is a geographer specializing in bio-physical accounting and sustainability policy and planning. His research explores linkages between human activities and the natural environment (dependence and impact). He uses and develop various bio-physical (i.e., land, energy and water) accounting tools, and examine the policy implications of human – environment interactions at several spatial scales. Dr Kissinger holds a PhD in urban and regional planning from the ‘School of Community and Regional Planning’ at the University of British Columbia (UBC) and a Natural resources management Master degree from the University of Haifa. Dr. Kissinger is leading the ‘Sustainability and Environmental Policy’ research group at the Department of Geography and Environmental development at the Ben-Gurion University of the Negev. Following the above research interests, one aspect of the research group focus is ‘Food System Sustainability’. The research explores direct and indirect connections between food consumption and production and different aspects of sustainability. Few examples of recent research projects include: A study which analysed the bio-physical inputs and outputs of Israel’s grain and meat system; a study on Israel’s food security exploring the extent to which Israel can advanced self-sufficiency; a study which explores households’ food consumption and footprints.

Prof. Noga Kronfeld-Schor is a faculty member and head of the department of zoology at Tel Aviv University, mostly engaged in the fields of ecological and evolutionary physiology. Prof. Kronfeld-Schor focuses on several projects, including mechanisms and significance of biological rhythms (both daily and annual), ecology of thermoregulation, and the use of diurnal animal model for the study of depression. She was a member of the board of SPNI (society for the protection of nature in Israel), and member of the board’s conservation committee, and is currently member of the board of directors of the nature and national parks protection authority of Israel (INPA), and head of the science and education committees of the Board.

Prof. Ron Milo is a faculty member in the Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences at the Weizmann Institute of Science. Prof. Milo is working to harness the tools of systems biology research (Systems Biology) to environmental and sustainability challenges. His lab investigates the processes of photosynthesis and carbon sequestration, which are the natural world’s engine for converting solar energy into sugars. It is also a source of human food and the dominant process determining the composition of the atmosphere. These studies concentrate on examining the possibilities of carbon-based metabolism pathways in an attempt to understand the basic design principles which convened during millions of years of evolutionary experiments. The aim of the study is increase our understanding on how to improve our ability to produce food and fuel more efficiently. In recent years, his lab is leading research in quantifying the environmental impacts of production and consumption of animal-based products – another important metabolic pathway for humanity, occuring on a regional and global scale. Prof. Milo is the founder and developer of BioNumbers, a database of useful numbers in biology for researchers and the general public.

Prof. Tamar Dayan is a faculty member in the department of zoology at Tel Aviv University, mostly engaged in the fields of ecology and nature conservation. Prof. Dayan is highly involved in developing and combining of sustainability, environment and agriculture, and has many years of public and scientific activity. Among her former public, scientific and environmental positions: plenum member of the Israeli parks and nature reserves authority, chairman of Israeli UNESCO human and biosphere committee, member of the parks and nature reserves council, member of the Israeli oceanography research institute board of directors, member of the national R & D council, and chairman of the board of SPNI (society for the protection of nature in Israel) and of OLI (SPNI Open Landscape Institute). In the recent years she is leading the establishment of the Steinhardt museum of natural history at Tel Aviv University, which will serve the national natural collections of Israel.

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